Roll feed



S. M. CHMELA June 30, 1970 ROLL FEED 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 17. 1968 ll'lllll 5 mm Om INVENTOR STEPHEN M. CHMELA S. M. CHMELA ROLL FEED June 30, 1970 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 17, 1968 INVENTOR STEPHEN M CHMELA June 30, 1970 s. M. CHMELA v 3,517,872

ROLL FEED 4 Sheets-Sheet 1'5 Filed Au 17, 1968 I62 I INVENTOR STEPHEN M. CHMELA BY QM 6'. Ojflml/Z) 22 I63 ATTY June 30, 1970 s. M. CHMELA 3,517,372

' ROLL FEED Filed Aug. 17, 1968 4 Sheets Sheet 4.

INVENTOR STEPHEN MCHMELA ATT'Y United States Patent 3,517,872 ROLL FEED Stephen M. Chmela, 1514 Mark Drive, Mount Prospect, Ill. 60056 Filed Apr. 17, 1968, Ser. No. 722,056 Int. Cl. B65h 17/22 U.S. Cl. 226-90 14 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A unitary roll feed for feeding web material to a machine having a simplified manually operable means to permit feed length adjustment while the machine is in operation. A pulsating brake, automatic and manual roll lifter, and oiler are provided in the same compact housing. Since all of these features are in a single unit, it may be universally applied to any type of press, punch or analogous machine without loss of any one of the features.

This invention relates to web feeding mechanisms in general and, more specifically, is directed to a roll-type feed having a combination of novel features in a compact and uncomplicated design. These include an improved adjusting means which permits the feed to be quickly and conveniently adjusted without stopping the machine which drives and is fed by the roll feed; a pulsating brake operable in an intermediate portion of the machine cycle; a manually operable thickness adjustment and automatically operated roll lifter; and a gravity-type oiler with automatic shutoff in the event the machine operation is stopped.

In the feeding of web-like material such as metal strips or the like for cutting, punching and similar operations, it is a well-known procedure to employ co-acting feed rolls which engage opposite sides of the web of material. One or both of the feed rolls are actuated intermittently from a drive means through a unidirectional clutch of the ratchet or overrunning type. During each operative stroke of the reciprocating machine, the feed rolls are accelerated from the idle position through a feed cycle to a stop position. As the roll feed reaches the stop position, the press recycles and the operation is repeated.

The present invention relates to a compact roll feed of uncomplicated design having many desirable features which are usually only found in more expensive and complicated roll feeds. These include a novel adjustment to vary the amount of feed from zero to maximum by a simple hand-operated adjustment. In the present invention, such adjustment may be conveniently and easily accomplished even when the press is in operation through manual rotation of an adjustment knob. In addition, the pres ent invention also includes a simplified roll lifter arrangement which becomes operative at the end of the feed cycle to release the driving engagement of the rollers with the web of material fed to permit locating means to position the Web for maximum accuracy in the cutting, punching or forming operations. The invention further includes a novel brake means which becomes fully operative in the intermediate part of the press cycle or at the end of the feed cycle to bring the feed rolls to a full stop or idle position to prevent overrunning of the material. The present invention also includes a manually operable thickness adjustment which is integrated with the automatic roll lifter. A gravity-type oiler is also provided to lubricate the material to be processed. The oiler includes a novel 3,517,872 Patented June 30, 1970 'ice automatic flow cutoff arrangement which becomes operable when the receiving or drain tank reaches a certain level to guard against oil overflow in the event that the operator fails to close the fiow control valve.

The present invention has several advantages over existing types of roll feeds in that it is universally applicable to the various types of machines, such as presses, punches or the like. The entire assembly is extremely compact and iseasily installed, at it needs only to be attached to the machine and a drive arm attached to the drive on the machine. The adjustment is located at the level of the bed of the machine and may be conveniently accomplished by the press attendant during press operation without the aid of tools. The roll feed is of simplified construction which makes it economical to manufacture yet provides many features only available in more expensive designs. Because of its simplified construction, it is also extremely reliable in use, for it is a well-known fact that oversophisticatiou oftentimes breeds unreliability in machine designs.

It is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved adjustable roll feed of uncomplicated construction which is economical to manufacture.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a new and improved adjustable roll feed having a roll lifter which becomes automatically operative at the terminal part of the press cycle. Such roll lifter includes a thickness adjustment and a lock out means which renders the roll lifter inoperable at the option of the user.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide an adjustableroll feed having a brake means which becomes operative shortly before the terminal part of the feed cycle to prevent overrunning of the feed rolls due to inherent inertia.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a roll feed having a simplified form of adjustment means which permits the feed length to be adjusted from zero to maximum by merely rotating a hand wheel.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a new and improved compact roll feed of uncomplicated design having feed length and thickness adjustments, automatic roll lifter, pulsating brake and oiler with automatic cutoff, all of which are combined in a compact assembly and related to provide maximum efiiciency in the feeding operation.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a gravity type oiler on a roll feed with a simplified but automatically operated flow cutoff.

Additional objects of the invention will become apparent when reference is made to the following specifications and accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the roll feed of the present invention being operatively installed on a punch press which is shown fragmentarily;

FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded perspective view of the feeding portion of the roll feed;

FIG. 3 is a view of the adjusting means of the roll feed shown in FIG. 2 with the feed at the zeroadjust position;

FIG. 4 is a view taken generally along the line 44 of FIG. 3, showing the adjustment at the zero position in solid lines and in phantom lines at the maximum feed position;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged end elevational view of the roll feed with the end cover removed and parts of the assembly broken away to show the oiler;

FIG. 6 is a view of the right-hand end of the roll feed with the cover removed to illustrate the roll lifter and intermittent brake assembly;

FIGS. 7-10 illustrate in enlarged cross section the sequence of operation of the intermittently operable roll lifter means with FIG. 7 being taken generally along the line 77 of FIG. 13;

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary perspective view of the thickness adjustment for the rolls;

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary schematic perspective of the braking arrangement;

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken generally along the line 1313 of FIG. to illustrate the basic relationship of the entire assembly; and

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken generally along the line 14-14 of FIG. 5.

Referring now to FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 generally indicates the roll feed assembly of the present invention, being illustrated in supported relation on the input side of a punch press indicated generally by the reference numeral 11 and shown only fragmentarily. The roll feed includes a center housing 12 having covers 13 and 14 at opposite ends. The center housing forms a tank for oil to be supplied to the oiler to be described, and includes an air-tight cap 15' which is removable to permit the oil supply to be replenished as needed. Outwardly of the end cover 14 is a drive arm 15 which has a driving link 16 which is attachable to the conventional drive (not shown) of the press 11. It can be appreciated that the drive arm 16 may assume any desired angle, however, in most cases will be substantially vertical, as shown.

The roll feed 10 is attached to the front or input side of the press by any suitable means. Because of its unique design, it is universally applicable to attachment to any type of press by merely providing a suitable bracket 25' to support its weight and oppose the reaction forces of operation. The center housing 12 includes a pair of guides 20 and 21 which provide general guidance for the web of material 22 which is fed to the press 11. The upper guide 21 is provided with detents (not shown) which cooperate with spring biased pins on the movable guide blocks 25 and 26. The blocks 25 and 26 may be adjusted laterally to accommodate changes in the width of the web 22.

Adjustment of the length of feed is accomplished through rotation of the handle 23, while the thickness adjustment may be performed by rotating the handle 24. As is evident, because of the convenient location of each of these adjustments, and the manner in which they operate, they may be performed while the press is in opera- 1 tion. The vertical guides 20 and 21 are located generally in alignment with the feed level of the die and, as will be appreciated hereinafter, are generally aligned with the feed rolls as are the guide blocks 25 and 26. A handle 27 is also provided to permit the attendant to separate the rolls during threading of the web, as occurs upon startup or when the supply coil is exhausted.

Referring now to FIG. 2, the roll feed portion of the general assembly is shown in schematic exploded perspective, including an upper roller 30 and lower roller 31. As is well known in the art, the web of material 22 is fed between the bed to the press by the angular or rotational movement of the rollers 30 and 31. Roller 30 is integral with or attached to a shaft 33 which is driven by a clutch 32 which is of the unidirectional variety, rotating the roller 30 in a clockwise direction only when viewed from its left-hand end.

At the opposite end of the shaft 33 is a brake assembly 34 which will be described in greater detail hereinafter. Intermediate the brake assembly 34 and the end of the upper roll 30 is a spur gear 35 which meshes with a spur gear 36 mounted on the shaft 37 to drive the lower roll 31. The lower roll 31 rotates at the same speed as the upper roll 30 inasmuch as the gears 35 and 36 are of identical construction, 4

A feed length adjustment assembly is indicated general- 1y at 40 and forms a part of the power train extending from the drive arm 15 to the unidirectional clutch 32. Basically, power input is as follows: The drive arm 15 oscillates the shaft 41 which, in turn, rotates a drive arm 42. As seen in FIG. 4, the drive arm 42 includes a pair of spaced apart rods 43 and 44 which mount a traveling or sliding block 45 having a central opening 46. In the position shown in solid lines in FIG. 4, the block is at the zero feed position with the central opening 46 having its geometric axis in alignment with the axis of the drive shaft 41. As will be described below, in this position, angular movement of the arm 42 does not impart any driving motion to a segmented or quadrant gear 48.

The central opening 46 in the sliding block 45 receives a drive pin 47 which is attached to one end of the quadrant gear 48. The quadrant gear 48 is suspended by a pair of links or straps 50 and 51 supported on opposite ends 53 and 53' (FIG. 13) of a cooperating spur gear 52 which is rotatable relative to the shaft 33. The end of the gear 52 serves as a drive input to the clutch 32. As can be appreciated, the quadrant gear 48 is mounted for angular oscillating movement about the shaft 54 which is carried by the links 50 and 51 which are angularly adjustable, as will be seen. The axis of the shaft 54 is located so that the teeth on the quadrant gear 48 will always remain meshed with the teeth on the spur gear 52 which drives the clutch through its drive end 53.

The lower ends of the links 50 and 51 receive bifurcated links 55 and 56 which are pivotally attached to opposite sides of a barrel nut 57 supported on a threaded shaft 58, the latter being rotated by adjustment knob 23. As illustrated schematically in the drawings, the inner end of the threaded shaft 58 is held against longitudinal movement while being freely rotatable so that rotation of the handle 23 results in the barrel nut 57 traveling along the shaft, causing angular movement of the links 50 and 51 and shifting the axis of the shaft 54 which mounts the quadrant gear 48. This results in the sliding block 45 moving along the rods or ways 43 and 44 on the link 42 relative to the shaft 41, varying the amount of angular movement transmitted to the spur gear 52.

Summarizing the general operation of the roll feed, when the arm 15 is moved in response to movement of the press, angular motion is imparted to the shaft 41 which, in turn, rotates the drive block 45 in a counterclockwise direction when viewed from the left-hand end of the shaft 41. This motion is transferred to the quadrant gear 48 through the drive pin 47, causing the quadrant gear 48 to move angularly to impart rotation to the spur gear 52. The rotational or angular motion is transmitted through the end 53 of the gear 52 to the unidirectional clutch 32 which, in turn, transmits the motion to the shaft 33, causing the upper feed roller 30 to rotate in a clockwise direction. The gear 35 drives the gear 36 so that the lower cooperating feed roller 31 will also move angularly to cause feeding of the sheet or web material between the rolls 30 and 31.

As can be appreciated by referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, when the adjusting handle 23 is rotated to a point where the barrel nut 57 approaches the end of the threaded shaft 58, the bifurcated links 55 and 56 will have moved the axis of the shaft 54 in an are, causing the sliding block 45 to move inwardly to the position shown in solid lines in FIG. 4 and phantom lines in FIG. 5. In this position with the axis of the drive pin 47 coaxial with the axis of the drive shaft 41, any motion imparted to the drive arm 15 only causes the drive block 45 to rotate about the peripheral surface of the drive pin 47. Accordingly, no motion is transferred to the quadrant gear 48 as the adjustment is in a zero feed position. As the sliding drive block 45 is moved radially outwardly along the guideways 42 and 43 in response to reverse rotationof the handle 23, the amount of angular movement transmitted to the quadrant gear 48 is progressively increased with a corresponding increase in the angular movement of the rollers 30 and 31 and the length of feed. As can be appreciated, it is evident that the length of feed may be selectively varied between full and zero feed to suit the particular requirements in the punching or cutting operations. As seen in FIG. 5, detents formed on the underside of the handle 23 cooperate with a spring biased pin 28 to maintain the adjustment in the selected position.

A gauge which illustrates the feed length is shown at 67 in FIG. 5, being moved by a tensioned wire 68 having one end attached to the housing through a spring 69 and the other end attached to the top of the arm 50 and calibrated to indicate the feed length.

In FIG. 12, the pulsating brake assembly 34 is illustrated in schematic form exploded away from the other parts with the exception of the drive shaft 41, which has a cam surface 71. A cam follower 72 in the form of a roller cooperates with cam surface 71 and actuates the pulsating brake assembly 34. The cam follower 72 is carried on the end of a lever arm 73 which is joined to a shaft 74 having at the opposite end a lever arm 75. The lever arm 75 engages a brake actuator 76 which is located within a brake drum 77 and will be described in greater detail hereinafter.

The brake assembly 34 is illustrated in greater detail in the end elevational view of FIG. 6, consisting of a pair of brake bands 78 and 79 having spring means 80, 81 and 82 which pull them to the closed position. The brake bands or shoes 78 and 79 cooperate with the interior of the drum 77, which may be a conventional brake drum from an automobile joined to the end of shaft 33.

As shown in the end elevational view of FIG. 6, the brake operator 76 actuates the brake bands 78 and 79 through a spring 84 acting against a pin 85 which, in turn, expands the lower brake band 79 through cam operator 88, acting through pin 86. The tendency of the brake to move counterclockwise urges the upper shoe against the fixed pin 87, causing the shoes to expand. The normal shoe adjustment 87' is also provided. The action of the operator 75 through the spring 84 prevents firm application of the brakes to preclude mechanical damage to the assembly. The brakes may be adjusted to have light braking force in the off position provided by spring 81 and eccentric anchor post 87. The actual or full braking force may be set to occur at any desired time 'by location of the cam operator 71. In the present case, braking occurs as the press begins its downward stroke, assuring that the material being fed will be fully stopped before the forming operation occurs. Also, if the press is stopped at the top of the stroke, braking pressure will be at maximum.

The roll lifter and thickness adjustment is shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 13 and the schematic diagrammatic view of FIG. 11. The roll lifter is also cam operated. Operation is timed to occur at the terminal part of the press stroke to permit locating pilot pins to enter the work and center the same for cutting, punching, forming or the like. This is particularly useful in progressive die stamping where the work must be centered preparatory to engagement by the die for the stamping operation. As will be described, the roll lifting function can be omitted by a simple adjustment.

Basically, the roll lifter operates through a cam follower which lifts the roll at the end of the downward stroke of the press. On the retracting or upward stroke, a novel lost-motion arrangement permits the cam operator to become ineffective so that lifting does not occur as the feed is operated through the final half of the retracting stroke. This unique roll lifting arrangement is integrated with a thickness adjustment which is shown in the schematic view of FIG. 11. The handle 27 shown in FIG. 1 is located adjacent the thickness adjustment and is operative through the adjustment to permit manual separation of the rolls to permit threading the lead end of a new coil through the feed rollers by a simple manual operation.

For convenience and clarity of description, in FIG. 6 the gear drive on the ends of the shafts has been omitted. In FIG. 6, it can be seen that the shaft 37 which mounts the lower roll 31 is supported in a support arm 90 which, in turn, has the inner end supported on a shaft 91 which is eccentrically mounted relative to the opening 92 in the support arm 90. The end of the shaft 3-7 is illustrated in cross section, as it projects through the central part of the support arm 90, and the shaft 33' in cross section as it emerges from the support in the housing -12. The outer end of the arm is supported on the end of a pin 93 which is upwardly biased by a spring located in a spring tower 94. The lower end of the spring tower has a projecting reaction pin 95 which is attached to a lever arm 96 carried on a movable shaft 97. The shaft 97 is joined through a link arm 98 to a thickness adjustment 99 which includes a threaded shaft 100 which is fixed in the housing 12 at its inner end as shown at 101. The shaft is supported for rotation, however, is held against axial movement. Adjustment of thickness is facilitated by the handle 22 which has the under sides formed with teeth 102 which cooperate with a detent means 103 such as a spring biased ball, pin or the like. The threaded shaft 100 is provided with a tubular nut 104 which has a U-shaped bracket 105 pivotally attached by trunnions as at 106. A connecting link 108 joins a main link 109 at 110 with the main link 112 being pivotally joined to a lever arm 111 on the end of the shaft 91. The opposite end of the link is joined through a pin 113 to the lever arm 98 to form a linkage assembly.

As can be appreciated by consideration of FIGS. 6 and 11, when the handle 22 is rotated, the tubular nut 104 moves along the threaded shaft 100, causing the lever 109 to move which, in turn, causes the compression in the spring towers 94 and 94' to be increased or decreased, depending upon the direction of movement of the shaft 97 Simultaneously, the cam surface 115 on the end of the shaft 91 is rotated, causing the inner end of the arm 90 to move up or down, carrying with it the shaft 37 which mounts-the lower feed roller 31 in the opening 116 in the arm 90. Because the arm 90' (shown in FIG. 12) is identical to the arm 90 and supported in a like manner, the corresponding parts are designated with prime numerals, it being understood that the two arms are moved in unison, with spring compression compensation being accomplished through the shaft 97 and spring towers associated with each of the support arms. The increase in roll spacing is accompanied by an automatic increase in stock pressure.

The roll lifting function is obtained through a lostmotion cam arrangement which is shown in enlarged views in FIGS. 7-10 in various stages of operation. The motion generated by the cam is transmitted through a follower (FIG. 7) on an arm 120 which, as seen in FIG. 13, is attached to the end of a hollow shaft 121 which supports a pair of identical fingers 123 and 123. The shape of the finger 123 is best shown in FIG. 6 and has its outer end in engagement with a hoo -shaped shoulder portion 124 formed in the roll support arm 90. As can be appreciated, when the shaft .121 is rotated in a clockwise direction, the fingers 123 and 123' engage the opposed shoulders on the arms 90 and 90, compressing the springs in the spring towers 94 and 94 and moving the lower roll away from the upper roll.

The general sequence of feeding is as follows: When the press is moving upward, the link 16 (shown in FIG. 1) moves the drive arm 15 in a counterclockwise direction, rotating the shaft 41 and causing feeding as described above. During this time, the cam operator 142 assumes the position shown in FIG. 7, as the shaft 41 initially rotates relative to a fixed outer sleeve and the rotatable or lost-motion shaft 144. The drive is transmitted by the end of the brake cam 71 engaging a shoulder on the shaft 144. A notch 141 formed in the drive shaft 41 permits the cam or dog 142 which is pivotally mounted on a pin 143 and spring biased, to be moved into the notch 141 by the operator 120 when the lost-motion shaft is moving counterclockwise or on the upstroke of the press. With the cam operator 1'42 aligned with the notch 141, as the shaft 41 rotates past the cam follower 130, it is moved into the notch being ineffective and the lower roll is unaffected. As the press reaches the upper end of the stroke and commences its down stroke, the spring biases the dog 142 outward, and the inner shaft 144 moves relative to the drive shaft 41 to assume the position shown in FIG. 8, with the shoulder 150 abutting the shoulder 151 on the shaft 41. Because of the relative movement between the shaft 144 and shaft 41, the notch 141 in the shaft 41 is moved relative to the cam or dog 142 to place the flat backing surface 152. behind the cam or dog 142. This prevents the cam from moving inward as it passes the follower 130 as seen in FIG. 9. In this position, the press is at the bottom stroke and the roll lifter operates as follows: The dog 142 actuates the cam follower 130 which moves the lever arm 120 through an angle, causing the shaft 121 to turn. The links 122 and 123 rotate downwardly, engaging the shoulders 124 and 124 to cause the support arms 90 and 90" to move downwardly, overcoming the pressure of the springs in the spring towers 94 and 94'. This results in the separation of the upper and lower rolls and permits locating pins or the like on the die to move the web 22 into alignment for the forming, cutting or punching operations.

The feed cycle commences as the press begins its upward stroke and the cam operator assumes the position generally shown in FIG. 10. The dog 142 is located for movement in the notch 141 and, as it passes the follower 130, it will move to the position shown in FIG. Upon beginning the feed cycle, a shoulder 160 formed by projecting ends of the cam 71 moves into engagement with the shoulder 161 on the shaft 141. As seen in FIG. 13, fixed brake pads 162 and 1 63 engage the periphery of the outer shaft 144 toassure that it will not rotate in either direction until engaged by the cooperating shoulder formed by the ends of brake cam 71 which is attached to the drive shaft 41. In this manner, the proper orientation of the shaft 41 relative to the coaxial cooperating shaft 144 is assured and the roll lifting function will be performed at the end or terminal portion of the feed cycle.

The roll lifting function can be omitted, if desired, by a simple manual adjustment. In FIG. 13, a knob 150' has a pin 1' which extends into the center of the drive shaft 41 and is of 'sufiicient length to extend past the radial passage 152' in the shaft. As seen in dotted lines in 1 1G. 10, the radial passage has a spring 153' which biases a pin 154 radially toward the outer shaft. The pin 151, when fully inserted, maintains the pin 154 within the peripheral limits of the drive shaft 41. When the pin 151' is moved axially, the pin 154 is released and, under the influence of the spring, moves into a seat 155 in the shaft 144, locking the shafts 41 and 144 for unitary rotation and rendering the roll lifter inoperative since the dog 142 is aligned with the notch 141. The end of the pin 151' may be tapered if desired to facilitate re-entry into a transverse hole in the pin '154 to unlock the shafts 41 and 144 and render the roll lifter operative again. As can be appreciated, the roll lifting function can be selected or omitted quite easily through a very simple hand adjustment.

The web oiler can best be seen in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 5 and the longitudinal cross-sectional view which is partly in elevation in FIG. 14. Upper and lower housing members 160 and 161 cooperate to form an oil shield supporting the upper and lower oil rollers 162 and 163, respectively. The rollers are formed from a simple tubular stock having plastic bearing caps pressfitted into each end, which caps are mounted for relative rotation in openings (not shown) formed in the housings 160 and 161.

A conduit 164 leads to the tank 12 which is located above the oil rollers 162 and 163. A flow control valve 165 is arranged in the conduit line and may be open to any degree to suit the particular needs of the operation to permit flow into the distribution conduit Ports 166 and 166' are drilled in the lower periphery of the distribution conduit 170 on opposite sides of the longitudinal center. Ports 167 and 167' are located axially and circumferentially spaced from the first set of ports, as are the ports 168 and 168'. When a narrow web is fed, the valve 165 is only opened slightly and the small flow of oil will drip out through the center holes 166 and 166' directly onto the web, since the conduit 170 will not be filled to the level of the holes 167 and 168. When wider webs are fed, the valve is opened slightly more and the ports 167 and 167' become operative because of the increase in the oil level in the conduit 170'. When the maximum width of material or web 22 is fed, the valve is fully opened and the ports 168 and 168' are also affected to release the oil onto the upper roller 162 and lower roller 163. As can be appreciated, any number of ports may be provided, depending upon the requirements.

When shutdown of the press occurs for examination of the die, inserting a new coil of material or the like, oftentimes the press attendant forgets to close the valve. In conventional oiler designs, this resulted in the oil continuing to flow and causing overflow onto the floor in the area of the press. The necessity to clean up this hazard causes further down time, with the attendant economic effects. In the present oiler design, this is avoided as the tank 15 is vented through a conduit 171 which communicates with the lower part of the lower tank or housing 161. When the oil level is above the level of the opening 171, the vent to the tank 15 is closed and the resulting vacuum or air lock initially slows down the oil flow and, after a short period, causes it to completely stop. This prevents further oil flow until sufficient oil is used up after start-up of the press to uncover the lower end of the vent conduit 171. As can be appreciated, this desirable feature is accomplished with a minimum expenditure in materials.

The compactness of the roll feed arrangement is best demonstrated by reference to the cross-sectional view of FIG. 13. As can be seen, the pulsating brake operating shaft 74 is located within and coaxial to the shaft 121 which serves to operate the roll lifter. The cam operator 71 is located adjacent to the lost-motion cam arrangement described in connection with FIGS. 710 and forms the stops for cooperating with the shaft 144. All of the essential operating features are located compactly within one housing and, therefore, the roll feed may be attached to any type of press, punch or the like, only requiring support in line with the dies on the press and attachment through an arm 16 to the existing drive of the press. The convenience in the location of the roll feed and the adjustments permit the thickness to be readily adjusted and the feed length adjusted without the use of any tools. Actual set-up only requires the operator to manually separate the rolls by moving the operating handle 27, which rotates the cam 172 (FIG. 6), actuating the follower link 173 to rotate the links 123 and 123' and move the support arms 90 and 90' downward. The web of material may then be threaded between the separated rollers. Thereafter, the feed length adjustment may be selected by cut-and-try or by setting the desired length by referring to the gauge which was described in connection with FIG. 5. The simplified form of design makes the roll feed very economically manufactured, assembled and shipped and the simplicity of the parts assures a long life and trouble-free operation, yet all the features of the more expensive versions are provided.

Upon a consideration of the foregoing, it will become obvious to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made without departing from the invention embodied herein. Therefore, only such limitations should be imposed as are indicated by the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An adjustable roll feed adapted for precision feeding of web material to presses and the like, said adjustable roll feed comprising a pair of rolls engaging opposite sides of said web of said material, unidirectional clutch means driving one of said rollers in a direction so as to cause feeding of said material, an input arm which is adapted for connection to the press drive and which is angularly movable through a constant angle, said input arm being joined to a drive shaft to transmit angular motion thereto, drive means for transmitting motion for said drive shaft to said unidirectional clutch means, and adjustment means forming a part of said drive means for permitting variance of the degree of angular motion transmitted to said unidirectional clutch means from said drive means, whereby the length of feed may be varied.

2. The adjustable roll feed of claim 1 wherein said drive means includes a shaft rotatable about a first axis, a drive arm rotatable with said shaft about said first axis and wherein said adjustment means forming a part of said drive means includes slidable block means on said drive arm, gear means operable to cause angular movement of said unidirectional clutch means, means joining said slidable block to said gear means, and means to shift said block means relative to said first axis to adjust the angle of movement of said gear whereby the length of feed will be adjusted.

3. The adjustable roll feed of claim 2 wherein said means to shift said block relative to said first axis includes means to support said gear means for movement relative to said first axis, and threaded shaft means operable to angularly adjust said means supporting said gear means relative to said first axis.

4. The adjustable roll feed of claim 2 wherein said gear means includes a spur gear supported for rotation coaxial with the shaft of one of said feed rolls, a segmented gear supported for angular movement about a third axis while in engagement with said spur gear and said means joining said slidable block to said gear means comprising a drive pin on said segmented gear engageable with said block means, and means selectively to shift said third axis relative to said first axis to move said block means and adjust the length of feed.

5. In a roll feed arrangement for feeding a web of material through a forming press or the like and wherein a pair of rollers engage said web of material to feed said material to said press and at least one of said rollers is unidirectionally rotated by a drive means responsive to movement of said press, the improvement comprising means to adjust the degree of rotational movement of said roller, said means to adjust the degree of movement of said roller including a drive arm movable about a first axis in response to movement of said press, a gear movable about a second axis and adapted to unidirectionally drive said one of said rollers, means joining said movable arm to said gear for transmission of angular movement thereto whereby angular movement of said arm causes angular movement of said gear, and means to shift said second axis relative to said first axis whereby the degree of angular movement of said gear may be varied thereby to adjust the length of feed of said web material, said means to shift said second axis relative to said first axis including hanger means supporting said gear for movement about a third axis and means to selectively position said hanger means relative to said third axis whereby said gear will be moved relative to said first axis to adjust said feed.

6. The improvement in roll feed arrangements as defined in claim 5 wherein one of said rollers is provided with brake means and said drive means includes a shaft, cam means carried on said shaft, cam follower means operable to actuate said brake means to stop said rollers at the terminal part of said feed cycle to stop said material within the limits of the feed length adjustment.

7. The improvement in roll feed arrangements as defined in claim 5 including roll lifter means operable to separate said rollers to permit locating of said web prior to forming thereof.

8. The improvement in roll feed arrangements as de: fined in claim 5 wherein said third axis is located relative to said first axis and said hanger means is of sufiicient length to permit said second axis to be moved into coaxial relation with said first axis at the zero feed position.

9. In a roll feed arrangement for feeding a web of material through a press and wherein a pair of rollers engage said web of material and at least one of said rollers is unidirectionally rotated by a drive means responsive to movement of said press, the improvement comprising a roll lifting means operable immediately prior to said press reaching the bottom of its stroke, said roll lifting means including arm means supporting one of said rollers, means pivotally supporting one end of said arm means, means biasing the other end of said arm means upwardly to move said one of said rollers into engagement with the other of said rollers, finger means engaging said arm means and cam operated means to move said finger means, causing movement of said arm means against said biasing force to cause separation of said rollers.

10. The improvement in roll feed arrangements as defined in claim 9 wherein said means to pivotally support said arm means includes a cam means receivable in an opening in each of said arm means, and means to adjust said cam means within said arm to adjust the spacing between said rollers to compensate for diverse web thicknesses.

11. The improvement in roll feed arrangements as defined in claim 9 wherein manually operated means is provided to permit manual separation of said rollers for threading said web therethrough.

12. The improvement in roll feed arrangements as defined in claim 9 wherein said cam operated means comprises a cam follower joined to said finger means for rotation thereof, and cam means engageable with said cam follower means, lost-motion means to mount said cam means for actuation of said follower only on the downward stroke of said press.

13. In a roll feed arrangement for feeding a web of material through a forming press or the like and wherein a pair of rollers engage said web of material to feed said material to said press and at least one of said rollers is unidirectionally rotated by a drive means responsive to movement of said press, the improvement comprising means to adjust the degree of rotational movement of said roller, said means to adjust the degree of movement of said roller including a drive arm movable about a first axis in response to movement of said press, a gear movable about a second axis and adapted to unidirectionally drive said one of said rollers, means joining said movable arm to said gear for transmission of angular movement thereto whereby angular movement of said arm causes angular movement of said gear, and means to shift said second axis relative to said first axis whereby the degree of angular movement of said gear may be varied thereby to adjust the length of feed of said web material, said roll lifter means including a cam follower actuating means to separate said rollers, a first shaft rotatable about said first axis and forming a part of said drive means, a second shaft coaxially arranged for movement relative to the first shaft, cam operator means carried on one of said shafts and movable into a notch on the other of said shafts during the feeding portion of said cycle, and means on the other of said shafts to back said cam operator in an extended position to cause actuation of said cam means whereby said rollers will be separated when said press is adjacent the bottom of its downward stroke.

14. The improvement in roll feed arrangements as de fined in claim 13 wherein limits on the rotation of said first shaft relative to said second shaft are established by projecting ends of a second cam operator carried on one of said shafts, said second cam operator engaging a cam follower and being operable to actuate brake means to 1 1 12 provide termination of feeding by said rollers to maintain 2,693,955 11/1954 Maust 226--90 the length of feeding Within the adjusted limits. 2,757,584 8/ 1956 Clemente 226141 X References Cited ALLEN N. KNOWLES, Primary Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 5 1 1,030,183 6/1912 {Inman 226-145 C 2,262,915 11/1941 Bobst 2216-142 226141, 156, 154, 145

2,514,261 7/ 1950 Scheifey 226142 

